Cutting corners

SPD detective disregarded paperwork requirements

A Springfield Police detective who is the
subject of an Illinois State Police investigation has a record of
failing to submit necessary court paperwork on time, according to a
document obtained by Illinois Times. Detective Jim Graham, who on Jan. 17 was
placed on paid administrative leave, has neglected to file
“returns” on search warrants eight times since 2003
–- more than any other officer. A list generated by a
Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s office and titled
“Springfield Police Department Search Warrant Returns
Needed” shows names of eight officers next to addresses and
dates search warrants were approved. Of those eight officers, five
had only one missing return, and three had just two. Graham had
eight missing search warrant returns. The list was dated Oct. 26,
2005. The ISP investigation has a broader scope,
including allegations of administrative and criminal violations
that form a pattern of misconduct. But the missing returns are in
keeping with the tenor of claims that Graham had a tendency to take
shortcuts. His longtime partner, Paul Carpenter, was placed on
administrative leave Oct. 4. Carpenter’s name appears on the
list, with one missing return. A “return” is one of four elements
related to a search warrant: The first is the complaint, requesting
a search warrant. The second is the affidavit — a sworn
statement outlining the reasons for searching a piece of private
property. The third is the search warrant itself, which lists the
types of items the officer plans to look for and collect (for
example, controlled substances, firearms, ammunition, or currency)
and is signed by the judge. The return is the fourth and final element — a recitation of all the items found and
seized during the execution of the warrant. And although returns almost
never play a part in the resolution of a case, there are solid reasons
they’re required, attorneys say. Returns assure judges that law
enforcement officials gather only the items they had legal permission
to seize, and provide citizens with a list of what’s been removed
from their homes. “It is for the protection of everybody
involved in a search warrant, especially the property owner,”
says Brian Otwell, chief public defender for Sangamon County.
“Oftentimes people aren’t present when a search warrant
is executed, and they don’t know what’s taken from
their home. And sometimes, the police find all sorts of stuff you
didn’t even know was in there — like drugs and guns
— so it’s good to have a list.” Steve Weinhoeft, first assistant
State’s Attorney, describes the return as an “extremely
routine simple administrative function,” usually accomplished
by stapling the evidence log (required by police procedure) to
another memo and dropping it off with court personnel. Of the four
steps necessary in a search warrant, the return is by far the
easiest, he says. Why Graham failed to fulfill this simple step
is a question Weinhoeft won’t answer on the record. But the
former major case detective’s list of missing returns
includes at least two related to a homicide investigation. Another return Graham failed to file was for a
March 17 search warrant that resulted in the arrest of Larry
“Hollywood” Washington, an alleged drug dealer who SPD
detectives described to the State
Journal-Register as
“probably the biggest we’ve pulled down.”
Officers found almost 500 grams of powder cocaine hidden in
a graham cracker box in Washington’s kitchen pantry. Washington
— who had a 1994 felony conviction for manufacture and delivery
of a controlled substance — has pleaded not guilty. The return is just one of several items
missing in Washington’s case. The videotape of officers
interrogating Washington after searching his house has mysteriously
disappeared. And the affidavit for the March 16 search warrant was
not produced until this week, when reporters began asking about the
document. Drafted by Graham, the affidavit relies on
two sources of evidence for probable cause: a “trash
rip,” in which he and Carpenter sifted through
Washington’s garbage and found baggies said to contain
cocaine residue, plus information from a federal agent implying
that the search might turn up a weapon used in the 1999 murder of a
Chicago Police Officer. “[The agent] indicated that the
weapon used in the homicide had been purchased on behalf of Larry
Washington,” according to the affidavit.However, there may be problems with both
sources. Washington has a document purporting to show that his
trash was not out at the time the detectives claim to have found
it. Prosecutors have so far been unresponsive to his
attorney’s requests to have the baggies found in the trash
tested for fingerprints. As for the gun used to kill the Chicago cop,
it was recovered within hours of the incident, and the shooter was
convicted and incarcerated for the crime.